Cashmere Nails Put a Neutral, Elegant Spin on Velvet Manicures

You dont even have to feel it—all you have to do is hear the word "cashmere," and you likely instantly think of deliciously soft, luxurious coziness. What could be better? How about cashmere nails.

The latest mani craze, cashmere nails are beige or neutral velvet—meaning they look like cashmere fabric. "It is a perfect way to match with your cozier fabrics as the new season approaches," says San Sung Kim, a Nailing Hollywood artist. "The look is elegant and pretty. Although it is minimalistic, the velvet effect adds an interesting layer to what would be a normally understated color."

Read on for everything you need to know about the cashmere nails trend—from finding the right shade to how to DIY—directly from the pros.

What Are Cashmere Nails?

"Cashmere nails are typically a neutral-colored polish with reflective glitter or magnetic polish to reflect the soft, cozy look of cashmere," says Mazz Hanna, a Nailing Hollywood artist. "Cashmere nails really capture the cozy feelings of fall in a manicure. When using reflective glitter, theyre multi-dimensional and fun to look at. I love that cashmere nails can look good on anyone and everyone. It looks great on all nail shapes and lengths."

Hanna points out that magnetic polish and reflective glitter became super popular last year as people started discovering new ways to make the polish look even more magical, such as with cats eye, magnetic French, and velvet manicures. Cashmere nails are the latest iteration of the trend.

As always, social media has a lot to do with the surge of cashmere nails, too. "As is now the new normal, trends like this are driven by social media like TikTok and Instagram," says Thea Green, Nails.INC CEO and founder. "The trends move at such a fast pace, [but] theres no sign of the all that shimmers trend stopping—were in a glazed, glossy era with plenty of texture, and cashmere nails [are] a continuation of this. Cashmere nails are definitely an amped-up offshoot of the glazed donut, lip gloss, and chrome nail trends, with a shade-shifting element. Its the next stage in our obsession with all things glazed and shimmery."

@melanated.mani / Instagram

How to Wear Cashmere Nails

To make cashmere nails work for you, its all about finding the right beige or neutral polish shade for your skin tone. "The best way to find the right neutral shade is understanding the undertone of your skin color," Kim advises. "Try to find a color that is in the same color family as your tone, whether its cool, neutral, warm, or olive."

Green admits that sometimes, this process can be a case of trial and error. "Weve designed our polish bottles in such a way that you can preview every color on your nail before you wear it," she says. "Its the same way you try a foundation to discover your shade—you know what undertones your skin has and can find a shade to suit. We created our Caught In The Nude Collection ($9 each) to suit every skin tone."

But the beautiful thing is, eventually, you will find the right shade for you. "Cashmere nails can look good on any skin tone," Hanna says. "Since the trend is loosely based on beige tones, you can customize it to best suit your personal preferences."

Get the Look

A DIY job for cashmere nails is definitely doable. Just follow Kims instructions: After you prep your cuticles and nails, apply a layer of base coat before the color. Apply one thicker coat of beige or neutral velvet polish and use a magnet to shift the glitters into the position you want. If you are using a gel polish, shift the glitter colors before you cure the polish. If you are using a regular polish, work quickly with the magnet before it completely dries down. Finally, top it off with a layer of top coat.

For cashmere nails-ready shades, Hanna recommends ORLYs new collection of fall shades, "Plot Twist," which are perfect for this trend. "I think the shade Shaky Alibi ($11) would work beautifully for cashmere nails," she says. "All you need is a reflective glitter topcoat such as Flashing Lights ($6) from Salon Perfect to make it appear like cashmere nails at home."

@phoebesummernails / Instagram

Using the right polish certainly simplifies the process. "Weve made this trend easy for you," Green says. "Our shade Make It Mythical ($9) from our Euphoria Highlight range is already a shade shifter, so to achieve a subtly shimmering mani, all you need to do is paint a base coat layer, apply one to two coats of our polish, then seal with a top coat. If you want to nod to cashmere color in its purest form, add a layer of your perfect nude after the base coat [and] before adding a layer of Make It Mythical and sealing with a topcoat. Our work here is done."

For those who opt to go with a pro, as with any beauty endeavor, double-checking youre on the same page is key. "If you want this done at the salon... bring reference photos for the best results," Hanna says. "Its much easier to explain what you are looking for to your nail artist with photos."